Lembert Dome (Yosemite National Park, California)

 

Upon entering Yosemite National Park from the east, the first granite dome one encounters is Lembert Dome, whose's southern slope is only a few dozen yards from the highway. For many years and over numerous trips to the park, I have passed this granite behemoth with little fanfare, but finally I decided it was time to hike giant rock. 

My friend Bill and I drove to the park Friday evening and camped in Tuolumne Meadows Campground. We awoke early Saturday morning with a few hikes in mind for our agenda. Lembert Dome was first on the list. We quickly got ready and headed for the trail head, knowing that it fill sup fast.

The first part of the trail isn't really a trail, but simply traverses the sloping granite slab. As far as granite slab goes, this is a really large one, but in the sea of granite that is Yosemite, it's only a minor example. The 'trail', such as it is, continues to skirt the edge of the granite and enters a section of trees with CA 120 just feet below us. We scramble over logs and and loose boulders as we make our way around to the backside of the dome. At times, the climb is relentless, but eventually , we reach the ridge on the far side of the dome and while Bill takes a breather, I scramble up the granite and to see how far I can climb up.

A long granite spine, with drop offs on either side, leads to a tall and steep mini-dome. The view from up here is amazing and I can scan the majority of the high country of Yosemite. While I would probably be able to climb a bit and make my way around this section, the risk just didn't seem worth it and so, I head back down to Bill. 

We make our way through the forest and eventually trail/road to the trail head. Only a couple of miles on this one, but the steep grade at parts made for a really good workout.